Seasons Greetings from OBI & OTRADI
All the best to you and yours this holiday season and in the new year!
Vir Biotechnology Tackles COVID-19
Big news in the treatment of COVID-19! Earlier this year, OBI client company Vir Biotechnology and partner GlaxoSmithKline (GSK) announced a joint collaboration to produce an investigational monoclonal antibody for the treatment of COVID-19. The treatment, called sotrovimab, is an FDA EUA-authorized monoclonal antibody which is administered by infusion in the early stages of a COVID-19 infection in eligible patients. Last month, they announced a $1 billion U.S. government contract to purchase sotrovimab, to be delivered this week. Vir Bio and GSK also have other governmental purchase agreements through the European Commission. Preclinical studies indicate that sotrovimab retains activity against the full combination of spike proteins on the recently discovered Omicron variant.
Press releases for these announcements can be found here and here.
Congratulations Vir Bio!
More Exciting OBI Client Company Wins
- Rewire Neuro is a finalist in the upcoming Pitch Oregon by TiE Oregon, in the Life Science category.
- Pitch Oregon will take place February 11, 2022.
- In November, Hemex introduced an enhancement to its Hb Variant test that enables testing for beta thalassemia in addition to sickle cell disease. Gazelle is now the only point-of-care test for beta thalassemia on the market.
- Additionally, we were able to update our installed base automatically over the Cloud.
- Here is the link to our press release that explains more.
- ProMedix was recently accepted into Chicago’s mHub accelerator. Read mHub’s press release.
- ProMedix is developing HydraSense to provide a rapid, accurate, and noninvasive assessment at the clinical bedside or remote care setting to help diagnose sepsis and monitor patient decline and response to treatment.
- What is Gamma Prime Fibrinogen? Dr. David Farrell, Professor of Surgery at OHSU and founder and CSO at Gamma Diagnostics, Inc., shared his poster and abstract at the American Heart Association meeting.
- COVID-19 patients can develop extremely high levels of gamma prime fibrinogen (GPF), which has several important clinical implications relative to administration of anticoagulants and steroids.
- Read more here in the American Heart Association Circulation.
- We noted 50% growth in revenue from Q2 to Q3, with a record month to start Q4.
- Our SUTUREGARD and HEMIGARD products were placed on the MEDLINE catalog and have now been ordered by multiple hospitals through that pathway.
- CEO Dr. Dan Ladizinsky gave two plenary session talks at the American Podiatric Medical Association meeting in Boston in October, highlighting that HEMIGARD closure of diabetic foot amputations has reduced wound dehiscence and subsequent need for above or below knee amputation by over 80%. This improvement in outcomes is especially important since diabetic foot amputations have gone up in frequency post COVID due to poor access to necessary preventative care and to vascular complications of COVID increasing the risk of wound complications.
Congratulations on all of your achievements!
OBI’s Mentor of the Month:
Sheila Ramerman
Sheila Ramerman is one of OBI’s helpful volunteer mentors. With a background and education in Medical Laboratory and Hospital Administration, Sheila is a wealth of knowledge for our OBI mentees. Her primary areas of expertise are in FDA regulatory requirements and quality system basics. Sheila has extensive experience in designing and performing IVD clinical studies. She has worked in multiple start ups, and as a consultant to start ups. Sheila started in product development for an IVD company (point of care diagnostic) and worked into clinical studies, then in regulatory affairs, and into quality systems. Since then she has worked in regulatory/quality/clinical roles in other start ups. Her colleagues describe her as having a practical, pragmatic approach – what is needed now, and what’s needed in the future. They also appreciate her ability to understand the requirements and apply them and adapt as needed to the specific situation.
Thank you Sheila, for helping OBI mentees navigate the complex world of FDA regulation in the OBI Mentoring Program.
Hiring or Seeking?
Post it on OBI’s Job Board
OBI has launched a Job Board where you can easily list your organization’s open positions. Click here to post your open positions. We’ll approve it on our end, and it will be posted for 30 days (and it’s renewable too).
And, if you’re a job seeker and would like to have your resume reviewed by recruiters in the community, please upload your resume to the “submit resume” section of our job board.
PCC Bioscience Technology Information Sessions
Spread the word to interested persons to attend a Portland Community College info session to learn about the bioscience industry, the BIT program, and the admissions process.
Please review the info slides on this page and RSVP for an upcoming session. (An RSVP is required in order to provide you with the information to join the online session in Zoom.)
Questions? Contact a program advisor.
Preventing the Next Public Health Emergency
COVID-19 is not the first pandemic caused by a novel strain of a virus affecting the upper respiratory tract. Over the past 100 years, pandemics have been caused by novel forms of influenza and other coronaviruses, such as severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus (SARS) and Middle East Severe respiratory syndrome (MERS). Common complications of each of these infections include pneumonia which can lead to secondary bacterial infections requiring treatment with antibiotics. New evidence demonstrates the need to address microbial resistance to help prevent the next public health emergency. Read more about it here.
Life Sciences Trend Report
CBRE’s most recent U.S. Life Sciences Trend Report now available. A couple of key takeaways:
- The market has never been stronger – All-time highs reached in funding, job growth, demand for lab space and new construction.
- The near-term outlook remains bright – Data trends and sentiment from the field suggest continued active market conditions over the next year.
Download the full PDF report here, compliments of our friends at CBRE.
Pitch Oregon 2021
“In its 6th year, Pitch Oregon is TiE Oregon’s marquee event, attracting hundreds of entrepreneurs, mentors and investors each year. New this year, we are welcoming companies from around the Pacific Northwest to apply and applicants will compete for an equitable investment!
Applicants in the following categories will have the opportunity to receive an equitable investment. These applicants generate TTM of at least $250,000 or have raised external capital of at least $250,000:
Software / Tech Enabled: Companies with services or products related to electronics, software, hardware, artificial intelligence, cloud services, etc.
Life Science: Companies with services or products related to pharmaceuticals, biotechnology, medical devices, biomedical, telehealth, etc.
Clean Technology: Companies that aim to improve environmental sustainability with products or services related to renewable energy, recycling, green transportation, sustainable manufacturing, etc.”
OBI client company Rewire Neuro is a finalist in the Life Science category.
Additionally, Pitch Oregon has an Early-Stage category.
You won’t want to miss these fun events – pitches take place on February 11, 2022 from 1:00-4:00, and the winners will be announced at the TiE Oregon Annual Awards Dinner that evening.
More information and registration at TiE Oregon.
OHSU Innovates 2021 Impact Report
Oregon Health & Science University has just published their OHSU Innovates 2021 Impact Report. They highlight some of the innovations to come out of OHSU, showing resilience and strength during a particularly challenging time. Special shout-outs to OBI graduate Aronora, and current OBI client companies ProMedix, Inherent Targeting, and Vir Biotechnology, all OHSU spinouts featured in this comprehensive report.
Events
Join Us For These Upcoming OBI Events
Accelerate Biotech + Digital Health
Virtual Happy Hour
January 13, 2022
5:00-6:30 PM
Register now!
Lunch & Learn: Center for Experimental Therapeutics –
Translating Discoveries from Lab to Clinic
January 19, 2022
12:00-1:00 PM
Register now!
Other Great Community Events
OSU Advantage Accelerator Webinar:
Intellectual Property Essentials for Startups
December 16, 2021
12:00-1:00 PM
Register here
Zapproved Seminar: Turning Awareness
into Action with Dr. Dana Crawford
January 12, 2022
12:00-1:00 PM
Register here